This handbook is one in a series prepared for use at workshops designed to help teachers, administrators, and legislators understand and deal with the intricacies of school finance equalization plans in their states. Pennsylvania's education finance plan is discussed in this particular book. Chapter 1 discusses state support for education in…

This paper presents a five-year plan for the improvement of Pennsylvania's system of services for people with mental retardation and their families. It was developed over an 18-month period by 70 people, including people with disabilities, family members, advocates, providers of service, legislative staff, and county and state government…

A long-range school improvement program, under the direction of the Pennsylvania State Department of Education, was developed to coordinate and articulate the curriculum, as well as to structure school management and other district operations. Featured in the plan are: (1) a statewide testing program called "Educational Quality…

Despite recent efforts to encourage federal funding of psychological services for underserved populations such as the elderly and residents of rural areas, ample evidence suggests that rural areas are underserved by psychologists. Drawing on data from rural and urban areas in Pennsylvania, this paper argues that master's level training can provide…

An analysis of the department chair role to determine the extent of role ambiguity and role strain inherent in the job is the purpose of this report. Methodology is based on structured interviews with 56 department chairs in 9 high schools in one district and content analysis of written job descriptions. The findings identify six factors of role…

Statistical data on Pennsylvania higher education finance for 1981-1982 are presented. Tables provide the following information: current-funds revenues by institutional control, 1972-1973 through 1981-1982; percent of current-funds revenues by source, 1972-1973 through 1981-1982; current-funds expenditures by institutional control, 1972-1973…

This paper details a method for investigating the equity aspects of distributions within school districts of educational resources. To illustrate how to systematically examine in detail the allocation of school resources, the relationship between the distribution of a large number of resources among Philadelphia's public schools and the…

This paper discusses a statistical analysis of the impact on student learning of socioeconomic characteristics, certain aspects of the school environment, and the amount of educational resources expanded on students. It is felt that the analysis is quite similar to what economists do when they estimate production functions for films; but that…

This report explores some techniques that could assist educational managers in their attempts to arrive at more optimal input and output mixes. Following a review of the literature on input-output analyses in education and a description of the Pennsylvania Educational Quality Assessment Program (the basis of the present study), an empirical…

State governors' comments about higher education in their state of the state addresses include the effects of recent reforms, in-state retention of students, education and industry's needs, high college costs, academic preparation for college, faculty dissatisfaction, statewide cohesiveness, efficiency, economic development, and governance reform.…

Explores the association of district enrollment, minority enrollment, wealth, poverty level, fiscal capacity, and tax effort with changes in the distribution of Pennsylvania's federal aid due to implementation of Chapter 2 of the Education Consolidation and Improvement Act. Examines the law's effect on paperwork, local control, and encouragement…

"Straight A's: Public Education Policy and Progress" is a biweekly newsletter that focuses on education news and events both in Washington, DC and around the country. The following articles are included in this issue: (1) Senate Committee Reports Education Spending Bill: Senate Appropriations Bill Continues Cuts to Education Funding;…

In June 1993, revisions to the Pennsylvania School Code changed requirements for high school graduation from time spent in the classroom to mastery of 53 student learning outcomes. Districts were mandated to develop a strategic plan that included active community participation in implementing these new regulations. This study examined 17 districts…

Statistical data on Pennsylvania higher education finance for 1982-1983 are presented. Tables include the following information: current funds revenues by institutional control 1973-1983; percent of current funds revenues by source, 1973-1983; current funds expenditures by institutional control, 1973-1983; percent of current funds expenditures by…

The conference, which brought together key leaders from other States to share their experiences with year-round education, focuses on key issues raised during an earlier national conference on the same subject. Some of the topics highlighting conference speeches were: year-round education in transition; analyses of quality education, living…